Frequent Questions

Are palm oil plantations considered agricultural land or tree plantations under RFS2?

Palm oil trees are planted and managed for the purpose of harvesting palm fruit and not for harvesting the trees themselves, in the same way that a fruit orchard is planted and managed to yield fruit and not woody biomass per se. The RFS2 definition of forestland in 80.1401 includes tree plantations but excludes orchards, as we believe orchards are more appropriately considered a type of agricultural land (cropland, specifically), and orchard fruits planted crops. Thus, palm fruit qualifies as planted crops under the EISA definition of renewable biomass, and oil palm plantations would have to meet the criteria for existing agricultural land in order for their fruit and crop residue to qualify as renewable biomass under RFS2.